With a touch of "simple laryngitis," Neal Boortz spoke briefly to a standing-room only crowd in the Grand Ballroom of Roanoke's Wyndham Hotel on Tuesday, offering a dramatically revised tax plan and signing copies of his recent best-seller, "The FairTax Book."

"It takes power away from politicians," the popular AM radio talk show host said of his plan for a fair tax, receiving a sweep of applause. "By the way, is this voice turning anybody on?"

"The FairTax Book," which Boortz co-wrote with Georgia congressman John Linder, proposes replacing the federal income tax and other taxes with a sales tax. The book's jacket bears the letters IRS with a red line through them.

"The government shouldn't do anything for us we can do for ourselves," Boortz, a self-described libertarian, said shortly before taking the podium. "I just default to freedom."

After a minutes-long speech, he set up in a corner of the ballroom to sign hundreds of books in his tall, looping signature.

"He didn't have a lot to say tonight," said Vicki Blasiole, an educator from Troutville, as she waited in a line that circled the ballroom. "I think I'll thank him for having the courage to say what we're all thinking."

Several fans noted that on the radio Boortz can speak quite candidly. "You have to know when he's interjecting humor to make a point," said Brian Gottstein, a regular listener and fellow libertarian.

This was Boortz's first official visit to Roanoke, he said, but he is certainly familiar with the city. Boortz was riled by a September 2004 Roanoke Times photograph of a pregnant woman smoking in Southeast Roanoke while worrying how construction near her home might affect her unborn child. Study after study has shown smokers are less intelligent, he said Tuesday night.

Waiting in line to have his book signed, Joe Kirkpatrick said he had heard that from Boortz before. "He done called me stupid too many times on the radio," he said of his decision to quit smoking. "And the fifth of next month will be six months."